Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows faces Inception, directed by Batman maestro Christopher Nolan in the final 7 films to enter the Oscars race for Best Visual Effects.

The Visual Effects category is usually one of the most difficult to compete in, and big budget movies tend to dominate the nominations.

This year's final 7 films shows a stiff race between the highly magical Alice in Wonderland , Tron: Legacy and Iron Man 2 .

Voting for the Visual effects Oscar

Inception was a worldwide success for its innovation and strongly acclaimed story, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio in this thrilling  ride where technology exists to enter the human mind.

The final Oscar voting before the official announcement

All members of the Visual Effects Branch will be invited to view 15-minute excerpts from each of the seven shortlisted films on Thursday, January 20.   Following the screenings, the members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.

The 83rd Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Tuesday, January 25, 2011, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy's Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2010 will be presented on Sunday, February 27, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center ®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network.   The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.

VFX Oscar shortlist

Alice in Wonderland

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1

Hereafter

Inception

Iron Man 2

Scott Pilgrim vs the World

Tron: Legacy

FOLLOW THE ACADEMY
www.oscars.org